Facebook has changed its name: it has been known for some time. Since the beginning of January 2022, this thing has become official and everyone who uses the social network has received a notification which informed them of the change of name: Meta is the parent company which includes, among others, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
What did the Italian subscribers to the Zuckerberg after the announcement? They tried to understand the reasons for this choice (yes, it’s for the metaverse)? They scrambled to figure out which ones consequences it could have for them (we explained them here)? No, they started sharing a text en masse that should legally protect them and defend their intellectual property, be it text or images. They posted publicly on Facebook a message to prevent Facebook (Meta) from making their messages public.
Paradox in this paradox, not only is this thing totally useless and without any foundation, but it is pure the re-edition of an old buffalo, which was already circulating a few years ago. Only then the warning was sent to Facebook and now it has to do with Meta. True: it is a problem that also affects other countries (in the US posts of this nature began to spread last November), and yet it must be said that Italians seem particularly attracted to this type of hoax. In August 2020 it was circulating another, always announced by the peremptory “I do not authorize”, in which the parents explained to the schools and what they could do or not do with their children at the Ministry of Education. Through Facebook.
The message shared by Italians on social media
As mentioned, the text shared in these days is a slight variation compared to those of previous years: it circulates mainly on Facebook, but also on Instagram and through WhatsApp chats. AND also via sms, because you never know.
The initial part is meant to be both an invitation and an explanation: “Tomorrow starts the new Facebook / Meta rule where your photos can be used. Don’t forget that the deadline is today! It can be used in litigation against you. Everything you post will be made public today, including messages. It costs you nothing more than just copy and paste. Better to prevent in advance than legal entanglements and apologies later “.
Then there is the part to copy and paste: “I do not authorize Facebook / Meta or any of the organizations linked to Facebook / Meta to use my images, information, messages or posts, neither in the past nor in the future. With this press release I communicate on Facebook / Meta that it is strictly forbidden to copy, notify or take any other action of mine based on this profile and / or its contents. The contents of this profile are private and confidential information. There violation of privacy can be punished by the law: Facebook / Meta is now a public institution ”.
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Because there is no point in sharing this message
Okay, but why would this text be groundless? Why would that be a hoax? Beyond the fact that nothing has changed on Facebook, except the name of the company that controls it, to disqualify the message is its very content.
Let’s start with first sentence: “Tomorrow starts the new Facebook / Meta rule where your photos can be used”. When, tomorrow? The post has no specific date, it can be shared today, tomorrow, a week or 3 days ago. There is no specific date because there is no specific date when something happens. And there isn’t because there is nothing that needs to happen.
The second sentence is the one that most of all should allow us to understand that we are faced with a fake news (and also makes the whole story tragicomic): “Everything you publish will be made public from today”. Do you understand the involuntary pun, among other things published on a social network on which everything we publish is public? And already today, not in an alleged tomorrow.
Then again: “The contents of this profile are private and confidential information”, which obviously is not true, because the sense of a social network is precisely to share information about us with others that we do not want to remain private and confidential. Otherwise we would not post them on a social network. Finally, the most obvious falsehood of all, new this year (in previous versions of this chain of Saint Anthony was not there): “Facebook / Meta is now a public institution”. Which is totally groundless.
In short: not only sharing a post like that it makes no sense, has no legal value (if any were needed) and is slightly embarrassing, but still it is useless. The only way to better protect privacy on the Internet is to give up some of the services that the Internet offers for free (such as social networks, for example), or try to use them following common sense. AND our 10 tips to make it, too.
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